{"id":703871,"date":"2025-04-10T15:47:12","date_gmt":"2025-04-10T22:47:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chinadigitaltimes.net\/?p=703871"},"modified":"2025-04-16T16:51:49","modified_gmt":"2025-04-16T23:51:49","slug":"translation-chai-jing-interview-with-a-chinese-mercenary-fighting-for-russia-in-ukraine-part-one","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chinadigitaltimes.net\/2025\/04\/translation-chai-jing-interview-with-a-chinese-mercenary-fighting-for-russia-in-ukraine-part-one\/","title":{"rendered":"Translation: Chai Jing Interviews a Chinese Mercenary Fighting for Russia in Ukraine (Part One)"},"content":{"rendered":"

In recent days, the capture of two Chinese soldiers<\/a> fighting alongside Russian forces in Ukraine has highlighted the role of foreign fighters in that conflict. In a post to his X account, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy suggested that there might be growing numbers of Chinese fighting on the Russian side. Officials in Beijing responded by calling Ukraine\u2019s claim \u201ctotally unfounded<\/a>\u201d and denying that there are significant numbers of Chinese citizens fighting on Russia\u2019s behalf.<\/p>\n

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The first two captured Chinese citizens. Today, investigators from the Security Service of Ukraine spoke with them. We are working to establish all the facts regarding the involvement of these and other Chinese citizens being part of the Russian occupation army. Ukrainian\u2026 pic.twitter.com\/PkBpBjI2Qm<\/a><\/p>\n

— Volodymyr Zelenskyy \/ \u0412\u043e\u043b\u043e\u0434\u0438\u043c\u0438\u0440 \u0417\u0435\u043b\u0435\u043d\u0441\u044c\u043a\u0438\u0439 (@ZelenskyyUa) April 9, 2025<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

At the Financial Times, Christopher Miller reported that the two Chinese fighters, aged 33 and 31, had been captured by Ukrainian forces<\/strong><\/a> while fighting with Russian soldiers in the eastern Donetsk region. This prompted Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to instruct his foreign minister Andriy Sybiha to summon the Chinese charg\u00e9 d\u2019affaires in Kyiv for an explanation:<\/p>\n

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It is unclear whether the Chinese fighters were soldiers in the country\u2019s army or mercenaries who joined Russia\u2019s military on their own. There have been reports of Chinese nationals joining the Russian army independently and western officials said they had not seen any evidence of state sponsorship. <\/p>\n

Zelenskyy said Kyiv has \u201cinformation that there are significantly more Chinese citizens\u201d fighting in Russia\u2019s army and he had tasked his intelligence agencies with clarifying the facts. <\/p>\n

[Ukraine\u2019s Foreign Minister Andriy] Sybiha said the participation of Chinese citizens in the Russian army \u201ccalls into question China\u2019s declared position on peace and undermines trust in Beijing as a responsible permanent member of the UN Security Council\u201d. <\/p>\n

Moscow has also recruited mercenaries from countries across the world to fight with its forces in Ukraine. Many have come from Cuba, India, Yemen and several African nations. <\/p>\n

The only regular soldiers known to have officially entered the war have come from North Korea. Pyongyang sent more than 11,000 troops to help Russia last autumn, according to Ukrainian and western officials. [Source<\/strong><\/a>] <\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Posts on Chinese social media show that there are, indeed, a number of Chinese citizens currently fighting for Russia, either as mercenaries or regular army recruits. Some of these fighters post videos set to music, or use their social media presence to gain more followers or sell products online. Le Monde’s Harold Thibault recently profiled \u201cFen,\u201d a Chinese man who fought for Russia in Ukraine, spent much of his time there in hospital, and has since returned to China. On social media platforms, particularly Douyin, the Chinese version of TikTok, Le Monde \u201cidentified around 40 social media accounts belonging to Chinese individuals who, backed by photo evidence, claim to have signed up with the Russian forces. Fen only met seven of his compatriots on the front lines, but estimated that a few hundred may have joined the fighting<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n

CDT Chinese has republished an interview between investigative journalist and documentary filmmaker Chai Jing<\/a> and a Chinese citizen nicknamed \u201cMacaron,\u201d who has been fighting with the Russian army in Ukraine. The wide-ranging interview, conducted via video and interspersed with copious posts from Chinese soldiers involved in the Russia-Ukraine war, details Macaron\u2019s demoralizing experiences with perilous battlefield conditions; inadequate rations and equipment; racism against Black, Asian, and other foreign fighters; the motives of Chinese fighters, who according to Macaron can also be found on the Ukrainian side, though in smaller numbers; and desperate attempts to escape the fighting and return home to China. (For more CDT coverage of the Russia-Ukraine war, see \u201cFour Censored Essays on the Ukraine Crisis<\/a>,\u201d \u201cNetizen Voices on Ukraine<\/a>,\u201d and a censorship directive with instructions to \u201ckeep Weibo posts on Ukraine favorable to Russia<\/a>.\u201d)<\/p>\n